Lobster Female Maturity
Description
Eggs under the abdomen of a young, berried female lobster that has spawned for the first time. This commercially undersized lobster was sampled during the 2011 scuba diving survey near Caraquet, New Brunswick.
Credit: DFO
One of the most important regulations for lobster fisheries in Canada is the minimal legal size (MLS) of lobster that can be harvested. For conservation purposes, the MLS should be set to protect enough young mature females from being harvested. In the southwestern Gulf of St. Lawrence, fisheries managers have aimed to set the MLS at or above the size at which 50 percent of females in the population reach sexual maturity (SOM50) and spawn at least once.
This project will estimate the physiological condition, maturity status, and onset of sexual maturity (SOM) of female lobster at three sites in the southwestern Gulf of St. Lawrence. The research—jointly overseen by the Department’s Lobster Section and industry (Maritimes Fishermen’s Union, P.E.I. Fishermen’s Association)— will improve understanding of lobster stock status by addressing a critical gap in the information to support conservation and ecosystem-based decision-making.
Program Name
Fisheries Science Collaborative Program (FSCP)
Year(s)
2014 - 2015
Ecoregion(s)
Atlantic: Gulf of St. Lawrence, St. Lawrence Estuary
Principal Investigator(s)
Michel Comeau
Fisheries and Oceans Canada
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